Shearwater adventures, a tourist company accused of illegally constructing a new development inside the world famous rainforest in Victoria Falls, insists everything was done above board. The development consists of a new kitchen, a top class restaurant and bar, plus a converted and expanded information centre, all within the core zone of the Victoria Falls WoEnvironmentalists who spoke to SW Radio Africa last week said the Victoria Falls – one of the seven natural wonders of the world – was under threat due to the new development in the highly ecologically sensitive core zone.
They said the development violates national, regional and international regulations under which a World Heritage Site is governed. But Paul Connolly, a legal advisor to Shearwater, told us it was incorrect to suggest the company broke any laws.
Connolly said: There are UNESCO regulations pertaining to the site. The UNESCO regulations say, among other things, that there should be no developments in an area which is not already designated a facilities area.
Shearwater has simply improved and developed infrastructure within the physical parameters of the buildings that have been in existence for a long time. This is already a developed area and Shearwater did not go an inch outside that designated area.
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